This Mexican dog had its paws chopped off by a brutal criminal gang -- now see it run happily on new prosthetic legs...

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A dog in Mexico has been given a new start in life after receiving two prosthetic legs.

The dog, called Pay de Limon, allegedly had his two front legs cut off by members of a criminal gang in the city of Fresnillo.

Witnesses say they had seen the dog with members of a criminal gang before he was mutilated.

Pay de Limon is now being taken care of by Milagros Caninos, or Canine Miracles, a charitable foundation for dogs in Mexico City.

[Patricia Ruiz, Milagros Caninos, Founder]: "Pay de Limon had the misfortune of running into an organized crime group, in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Mexico, and they used him to practice cutting off each one of his paws, like they do when they cut fingers off human beings that have been kidnapped. Unfortunately, Pay de Limon had to live through that, but thanks to a few good people who rescued him, Pay de Limon was able to come to Milagros Caninos and here we try to give him the best life possible."

The canine charity raised over $6000 in donations to pay for Pay de Limon to receive two prosthetic legs.

Molds of the dogs legs were sent to OrthoPets, a company based in Denver, Colorado which specializes in animal prosthetics.

[Dr. Osvaldo Vital Reyes, Medical Director]:What we did was take a kind of mold with a cast called an orthocast, which is a made of plaster. We made the mold, which includes the entire anatomical structure of the limbs. This was sent to the United States. In the United States, they calculated the size they (the prosthetic limbs) would be, based on x-rays we sent and other measurements."

Pay de Limon is gradually getting used to wearing the prosthetics, and is now comfortable using them regularly for long periods.